New Rhythm Game, KickBeat, Coming to PS Vita from Zen Studios

The company that brought us the most-popular Pinball games on XBLA and PSN has announced an all-new franchise coming to the PlayStation Vita, and it won’t involve any pinball tables whatsoever. Called KickBeat, it’s an experimental rhythm game featuring fully 3D characters and combat and high-energy music. KickBeat is slated to release this summer exclusively for the PS Vita.

KickBeat offers players several innovative ways to interact with music. The game combines beat-matching mechanics with an acrobatic style of martial arts, turning every song into a raucous battle. The game also features a music analyzer that allows players to create new tracks from their own music libraries.

“Several years ago, we asked ourselves, ‘What would happen if we took a beat-matching game, replaced the abstract cues like bars, arrows and button icons with kung fu fight scenes, and set it all to some incredibly intense music?'” said Neil Sorens, Creative Director for Zen Studios. “We spent three years turning that idea into in Kickbeat, and anyone looking for something fresh and exciting and the music genre is in for a treat.”

The Kickbeat soundtrack hits hard; it’s comprised of licensed tracks from a diverse lineup of artists ranging from well-known bands such as Pendulum and Marilyn Manson, to indie pioneers Celldweller and Blue Stahli, to hidden talents like electronic music producer Voicians and Taiwanese rapper Shen Yi.